Earth's Yangzhou, Luo Feng's Arduous Cultivation
After the Great Cataclysm, Earth had long since entered the age of Martial Artists. To survive, humans had embarked on the path of cultivation, using martial strength to fight alien races and protect their home.
Jiangnan Base City in Huaxia was one of Earth's most prosperous Base Cities, with Martial Artists of the highest caliber. It drew countless exceptionally gifted Martial Artists from around the world. Yangzhou City, one of Jiangnan Base City's core urban districts, was also an important stronghold of the Dojo of Limits in the Jiangnan region. Martial Artists gathered throughout the city, and the atmosphere of cultivation was exceptionally strong.
The Dojo of Limits' dedicated training ground in Yi'an District covered several thousand square meters. Its floor was laid with a special alloy capable of withstanding a Star Level Martial Artist's full-strength attack, and even when struck by immense power, it could quickly repair itself. All manner of advanced cultivation and testing equipment stood around the training ground. Faint energy fluctuations filled the air, and an atmosphere of rigorous cultivation pervaded every corner.
At that moment, a young figure in the center of the training ground was cultivating madly, sweating buckets.
It was none other than Luo Feng.
Three years had stripped away the youthful immaturity of the once somewhat green young man, leaving him increasingly composed and resolute. He was bare-chested, his bronze skin covered in glistening beads of sweat that streamed down the taut lines of his muscles. Every inch of muscle held explosive power, its contours smooth and strong.
His hair was soaked with sweat and plastered messily to his forehead. His gaze focused and unwavering, he stared fixedly at a latest-model Punch Strength Tester before him. A faint aura of energy circulated around him, the power unique to a Star Level Martial Artist.
Luo Feng took a deep breath, his chest heaving as he adjusted the rhythm of his breathing and strength. Every muscle in his body tensed at once, every cell frantically drawing on the power within him. The next second, he stepped forward sharply, his body surging ahead. His right fist clenched, he smashed it into the Punch Strength Tester's sensor area with an unstoppable force.
Boom!
A deep, thunderous crash rang out. The instant his fist struck the sensor area, faint ripples of energy spread through the air, and the entire Punch Strength Tester trembled slightly. The numbers on its display began jumping wildly, finally settling before slowly falling back.
A string of bright red numbers stood out on the display-189,000 kg!
One hundred eighty-nine thousand kilograms!
If other Star Level Martial Artists in Yangzhou City, or even all of Jiangnan Base City, saw that number, their jaws would surely drop and their faces fill with disbelief. An ordinary early-stage Star Level Martial Artist's punch strength was only tens of thousands of kilograms, and even a mid-stage Star Level Martial Artist would struggle to exceed one hundred thousand kilograms.
Luo Feng's punch strength had already far surpassed that of Martial Artists at the same level, reaching the terrifying heights of Peak Star Level. Even among the younger generation of Martial Artists on all of Earth, he stood at the very top!
Three years ago, when Qin Yuan left Earth, Luo Feng's punch strength had been a mere 16,200 kg, only at Entry Star Level. In just three years, his punch strength had increased more than tenfold, and his strength had undergone a qualitative leap.
That was not all. Over those three years, Luo Feng's speed had also reached more than three hundred meters per second. When he unleashed his full power, he moved as fast as lightning, far too quickly for ordinary Martial Artists to track. Even more terrifying was his Spiritual Force. After three years of uninterrupted cultivation and tempering, it had reached an utterly terrifying level. When he used it at full strength, he could even easily lift a small interstellar spaceship with his mind. His mental attacks were powerful enough to instantly kill Martial Artists at the same level.
Such a terrifying rate of progress was a miracle in the entire history of cultivation on Earth.
Yet despite achieving such astonishing results, Luo Feng showed not the slightest trace of pride or smugness. Instead, his brows were tightly furrowed, his eyes filled with deep frustration and anxiety.
He looked at the number on the display and clenched his fist, his knuckles whitening slightly from the force. "Still not enough," he murmured, his voice full of self-reproach.
In his mind, his meager strength was not even worth mentioning compared with that of his teacher, Qin Yuan.
He never forgot that his teacher was a True God, a supreme powerhouse who stood at the very pinnacle of the universe and looked down upon the heavens and myriad worlds. He himself, however, was only at Peak Star Level and still far from even touching the threshold of Universe Level. In the vast universe, he was as insignificant as an ant. With strength like his, he had nothing to be proud of and was not worthy of being Qin Yuan's disciple.
That obsession sustained him through three years of relentless, grueling cultivation.
For those three years, Luo Feng's life had been simple and extreme. Aside from necessary rest, he had devoted every moment to cultivation. In his world, there was only cultivation: no entertainment, no slacking off, day after day, without ever stopping.
Following the top-tier cultivation techniques, resources, and cultivation plan Qin Yuan had left behind before departing, he meticulously tempered his body, strengthened his Spiritual Force, and immersed himself in comprehending the laws of the universe.
Every day, he spent several hours using the precious resources Qin Yuan had left behind to hone his body and draw out its potential. He devoted enormous effort to cultivating his Spiritual Force, making it ever more refined and powerful. At every moment, he was also comprehending the Law of Metal and the Law of Wood, sensing their mysteries.
Three years of dedicated contemplation had given him an exceptionally profound understanding of the sharpness of the Law of Metal and the vitality of the Law of Wood. His comprehension of both laws had reached the threshold of "law entry." Just one step further, and he would truly master the power of the laws, sending his strength soaring once more.
Yet Star Level and Universe Level, though seemingly only one step apart, were separated by an immense, almost impassable chasm that stretched before him like a natural moat. No matter how hard he tried, he could not break through that bottleneck and remained unable to enter the Universe Level realm.
What frustrated and unsettled Luo Feng even more was that he had yet to break through the First Tribulation of the supreme inheritance Qin Yuan had left him, the Nine Tribulations Secret Manual.
During this period, he had attempted to cultivate the First Tribulation of the Nine Tribulations Secret Manual three times, but every attempt had ended in failure.
The difficulty of cultivating the Nine Tribulations Secret Manual far exceeded Luo Feng's imagination. Every attempt meant enduring agony so intense it felt as though his soul were being torn apart. Every failure meant irreversible, severe damage to his soul. Even with the healing resources Qin Yuan had left behind, he needed several full months to recover completely.
Though Luo Feng's will far surpassed that of ordinary people and was unwavering, and though he gritted his teeth and persevered through the agony time and again, he still could not succeed. The First Tribulation of the Nine Tribulations Secret Manual required the cultivator to remain absolutely conscious while on the brink of death, with his soul subjected to extreme agony, and at the same time precisely inscribe an extraordinarily complex and intricate law pattern deep within his soul.
Its demands on soul strength, willpower, and concentration were all pushed to the absolute limit.
In his first three attempts, Luo Feng had relied on his extraordinary willpower to grit his teeth and hold on until the final moment. But just as the law pattern was about to be completed, he ultimately could not withstand the extreme agony that pierced deep into his soul. His consciousness wavered ever so slightly, causing the nearly complete law pattern to collapse in an instant, ruining everything at the final hurdle.
Three failures and three grievous injuries to his soul had not extinguished Luo Feng's will. Instead, they had made him even more determined.
Standing before the Punch Strength Tester, he calmed the frustration and anxiety in his heart and took another deep breath. His gaze became utterly resolute as he said softly, "One more time."
This time, he would make his fourth attempt to overcome the First Tribulation of the Nine Tribulations Secret Manual.
He slowly closed his eyes, cast aside every distracting thought, and adjusted his condition, preparing to draw upon his soul power and begin his fourth attempt.
But just as he entered the proper state and prepared to summon his soul power, a familiar, gentle voice, imbued with endless profundity, suddenly rang out behind him.
"Your condition isn't right."